Lost But Found - By Rev. Dr. Rick Brooks

Jesus told stories about what was once lost being found. Just check out the Gospel of Luke, chapter 15, and his stories of a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost son/brother. In every case, whenever what was lost is found, it is cause for great celebration and rejoicing. This is the way of God’s kingdom, Jesus says. This is the way of God’s heart toward his wayward children.

When you think about it, most of the stories of the season that we love so much, A Christmas Carol, It’s a Wonderful Life . . . and even The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, pick up on this theme of something lost or missing that is found. More often than not the thing “gone missing” is something in the heart that prevents the person (or Grinch) from seeing the miracle of life right before his eyes.

All of these stories seem to tell us: It isn’t necessary to lose something of value before we begin to value, appreciate, and even treasure it. And beginning to value the gift of  “ordinary life” right before us is the pathway to “being found” – that place where celebration and rejoicing are waiting to begin.

Prayer:

Lord, open my eyes this day that I may see your fingerprints in everything and everyone around me. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Letting God Handle It - by John Bush

Deuteronomy 4:12 Then the Lord spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of words but saw no form; there was only a voice.

In late January of 2001 I tore the rotator cuff in my right shoulder. A week or so later as the physicians were putting me to sleep my heart quit. When I opened my eyes after this encounter, I was startled that a nurse was holding a respirator tightly over my mouth and the rest of the staff there in the operating room were all white as sheep and appeared to be very upset about something. It was then explained to me that as they were administering the anesthesia my heart had quit.

Three days later after extensive testing it was determined that there were no heart problems and the reason for my heart stopping was due to a slow heart rate, which I’ve had all my life. This was not adjusted when putting me to sleep. The surgery was then performed and all went well.

Fast forward four days, it’s Monday morning and my wife goes to work. I have not been by myself since the heart stopping and now here I am all alone. It hit me, what if my heart stops, what will happen; I could die all alone and no one would know. I couldn’t sit still, I was simply terrified and spent several hours going from inside the house to wandering around out in the yard.

On one of the trips inside the telephone rang. I answered and it was Linda, a devout Christian lady, that I worked with. She was calling to just to check on how I was doing.  I will never forget her response when I told her about my fear of being alone. It will be ok she said, stop and talk to God and let Him handle your fear.

I vividly remember after she hung up, I lay down on the couch and prayed to God to take away the fear and anxiety. And then it happened, an unseen voice but a voice as clear as it could be said “it’s o.k.” Instantly the fear and anxiety was gone. I had heard the voice of God telling me that “it’s o.k.”

Prayer: Father thank you for your understanding and guidance that you provide if only we ask.  Amen!

The Goodness of God - by Judy Brehm

Deuteronomy 1:31  Common English Bible

³¹ and as you saw him do in the desert. Throughout your entire journey, until you reached this very place, the Lord your God has carried you just as a parent carries a child.

We all know the poem, Footprints in the Sand, where a woman has a dream of walking on the beach with Jesus.  Then she notices that during the darkest times in her life there is only one set of footprints.  She asks, “How could you desert me at the times I needed you most?”  Our Lord responded, “My precious child, I love you and will never leave you, never, ever, during your trials and testings. When you saw only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.” 

It really happened to me!  When my daughter was only 6 months old she was hospitalized for more than a month with life threatening illness.  We were a thousand miles from the nearest relative, we didn’t have a church, we had very little money.  I was with my sick child in the hospital 24 hours a day.  I was scared and lonely.  I didn’t know how I would make it.  It was only years later that I realized it was my dormant faith in the Goodness of God that got me through those times.   Realizing how important it had been me to have been brought up in the church is what brought me and my family to St Paul so that they might have the same benefits of knowing the Goodness of God.

The Serenity Prayer –  God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time; Enjoying one moment at a time; Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace; Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it; Trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will; That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him Forever in the next. AMEN.

Thought for the day  –  “Keep trusting God. He will lead you in every step of the journey.”  ― Lailah Gifty Akita

A Good Thing - by Walt Brehm

Scripture for today – John 3:16-18 The Living Bible

     ¹⁶ For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son so that anyone who believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.  ¹⁸ “There is no eternal doom awaiting those who trust him to save them. But those who don’t trust him have already been tried and condemned for not believing in the only Son of God.

     I spent some time in the Army.  After nearly a year of training I learned that soldiers do many things other than fight.  As a mechanized infantry platoon leader I was ready to fight but was never called upon to do so.  As the Chemical School security officer I sat in an office and shuffled papers.  One of those papers was to prepare a response to the Army Suggestion Program.   I read the suggestion, thought about it for a minute or two, wrote a short paragraph of rejection and forwarded it to my boss.  The next day the colonel came to my office with the paper in his hand.  He said, “Lieutenant, you took the easy way out, anyone can say ‘no.’ This is a good thing, think about it and find a way to say ‘Yes.’ ”

     What God has offered us is a good thing, eternal life.  All we need to do is think about it, believe and say “YES!”  And then the most amazing things will happen.

     Prayer – Our Father in Heaven, we praise Your holy name and seek Your forgiveness for the times our thoughts and actions have failed to meet Your approval.  We pray that You will open our eyes and hearts to the opportunity of eternal life with You that You have offered through Your Son.  In the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ we pray.   AMEN

God's Mercy Endures Forever - by Jude Williams Howell

"I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion." Exodus 33:19  NIV

I  read this Bible verse many years ago, and I thought, doesn't God have mercy on everyone?

The Bible says, "But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, and His righteousness to children's children." Ps. 103: 17 NKJV

My Father, Morris C. Williams, was selected for service in the Air Force and trained as a fighter pilot under the Southeastern Training Command. Because he had spent his junior and senior years at the Columbia Military Academy in Columbia, Tennessee, he was advanced to the rank of Cadet Officer and then to Platoon Lieutenant during his nine-month training period.

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In April 1943, he was assigned to the 36th squadron of the 361^st fighter group at Bottisham, England. After flying 45 combat missions between October and May of 1944 and 150 combat hours, he was shot down on May 24,1944 while flying over a German airport near Munster, Germany. He bailed out of his P51 Mustang after the plane burst into flames.

Following his capture by civilians, he was taken to a Dulag POW Camp for interrogation. He was then moved to Stalag 3 at Sagan, Germany. Next, he was moved to Moosberg for the remainder of his captivity. The camp was liberated by George C. Patton on April 29, 1945.

The Williams family were recipients of God's mercy and compassion! Not only did my father survive the crash, but he survived captivity as well. Soon after he arrived at the POW camp, he saw his childhood friend, Joe Covington, who was also from Meridian, and they both rejoiced in this Blessing from God.

My dad was presumed dead, and the word got back to Meridian that he had perished in the mission.  Imagine the joy and thankfulness they shared when they learned he was alive!

In the Bible, the virtues of mercy and compassion are mentioned in various forms hundreds of times, especially in describing God's nature. Instead of giving us what we deserve, God has shown mercy again and again to give us a chance to repent and be saved. What a Mighty God we serve!

Prayer: Thank You, Lord, for not giving us what we deserve!

Being a Good Neighbor - By Steve Rusk

Read: Luke 10:25-37 (NIV)

36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers? 37The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” Luke 10:36-37

I was going home from work the other day when I shifted into fifth gear in my standard truck and my clutch went to the floor. I was on the access road almost to the interstate, the traffic was heavy, and it had to be one of the hottest days of the summer.

Frustrated and focused on the task at hand, I hopped out of my truck, and I heard someone call my name. I turned around and looked, and here comes the pastor of my church. I glanced at my watch and looked back at him, and it occurred to me that he was heading to the church to preach the Monday Night service… he should be in a hurry. 

He took me to a service station to get brake fluid to see if that might fix the clutch and naturally, it did not work. With my options running slim, I asked him to give me a lift to the church and I would simply call someone to pick me up there. I really didn’t want to leave my truck on the side of the access road, but it was the only alternative at the time.

His daughter gave me the number for a wrecker service,and I called them. Frazzled from the experience and concerned that my pastor was now cutting it close on time, I pocketed my keys and hopped in their car.. A call comes in from the tow truck with a simple
question, “where’s the keys?” I shook my head and requested a U turn. After plowing through unusually heavy traffic for five of the longest miles in existence, we arrive at the truck and transfer the keys. In the face of short time and prior commitments, my pastor did not even hesitate to take me back. That’s what I call being the Good Samaritan.

Many times we get in a hurry and we fail to look at the needs of our neighbors. Why do you think the Samaritan stopped to help? I think the Samaritan exercised a righteous behavior.

q  He saw the need and took pity, indicating that his heart was involved.

q  He had a high quality of service, sparing no expense.

q  He made sure to complete the job, meeting all the man’s needs, and not just some of them. 

I watched a Network News Story and they had conducted an experiment about how people react to their neighbors needs. They sent out an ad that said, “we are looking for people to participate in an ‘on-camera tryout’ for ABC News.” The topic listed on all
those cards was the same: The Good Samaritan story from the Bible.

Following the directions the volunteers walked through a small park. Two men took turns playing a person in distress. The actors were told to play men clearly in need of help, and both cried, moaned and rocked back and forth. Who better to come to their aid than the volunteers, who approached with the Biblical story of helping one’s fellow man echoing in their ears?

Would the participants stop to help? Each volunteer was told the Good Samaritan story but only half of the volunteers got an additional variable - time pressure. Time pressure made a big difference in their behavior.

Only about 35 percent of the volunteers in a hurry stopped to help the actors. But almost 80 percent of those who were not rushed stopped to help.. Time pressure was the only significant factor the producers found that they concluded would determine if a particular volunteer would stop to help a stranger.

In an interview afterwards, one of the volunteers confessed that he did not stop because he thought the distressed man appeared crazy and it made him uncomfortable.

Being broken down on the side of road can bring about a certain distressed demeanor in all of us. Being Jolly wasn’t on my mind when my Good Samaritan showed up. I think that time pressure did not affect my pastor’s desire to help a neighbor in need. With him
it was the love of Christ that motivated him to help.

Think about this the next time you see one of your neighbors in need. Practice the Jesus Creed in all you do. A neighbor is anyone that is in need of help. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’ and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.” That is the command that Jesus taught us.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for people that act as good neighbors when we are in need. Help us to be the good neighbor even when it is not convenient for us because of time, recourses or feelings. Amen 

The Bayou - by Brenda Freeman

I have a long front porch that faces Bayou Castille.  It is an amazing place.  You can come up the steps, walk the length, enter my house and think you’ve passed a totally still and quiet place, where nothing at all is going on.  From the quick, initial appearance, that’s true. But the reality is something quite different.  It is only when you are willing to give your time and yourself to the bayou that she will open herself up to you and give to you.

When you sit still and quiet before her looking, day after day, you learn exactly what her trees, far and near, look like.  Then, and only then, will your eyes quickly detect when something is different: there’s an Osprey in a Cyprus across the bayou, a Blue Heron stands perfectly still in the water waiting for breakfast to swim near, a limb blew off in last night’s rainstorm, the King birds are back nesting at the water’s edge, a gator glides silently by.

When you sit still and quiet before her listening, day after day, you begin to know her symphony of sounds: the rustle of tiny birds flitting about in the underbrush, the gentle plop……plop…..plop of a squirrel discarding the unwanted parts of his pine cone, the frantic scratches of a game of squirrel chase, the movement in the pathways of the trees that the animals regularly use, each bird’s unique song and alarm sound, frogs calling to each other, mullet splashes, two owls hooting back and forth at sunset.

Just as I thought the bayou was silent, you can believe God is silent unless you purposefully pursue Him.  To begin to hear God you must sit still and quiet before Him, where He is your sole focus.  Read His Word so you get to know what He looks like, what He sounds like.  Talk to Him.  Listen to Him.  Breathe Him.

The bayou was always making noise.  It was my inattention that let me miss it.  God is always speaking to you.  Not purposefully pursuing Him and His Word will let you miss it.  Just like it took time for me to know my bayou, it takes time to begin to hear with your heart the voice of God.  And, just like the bayou came alive when I gave myself to it, God will come alive to you when you give of yourself to Him.

I want to challenge you to make time each day where God is your sole focus.  When you are willing to come before the Lord, giving your time and yourself to Him, He will reveal Himself to you in personal, intimate ways.

He is speaking.  Sh-h-h-h-h.  Do you hear Him?